In this episode, Molly O'Shea talks to John Coogan, EIR at Founders Fund and co-founder of Lucy and Soylent. They cover topics such as his role as an EIR at Founders Fund, his journey from starting Soylent & going through YC, becoming a successful YouTuber (over 430K subscribers & over 8M views), as well as his insights into the history of nicotine & tobacco with his company Lucy.

John dives into all of the complexities of startup entrepreneurship, the importance of really good storytelling in marketing, working in a regulated industry, as well as shares some hot takes in the VC/tech world.

Learn the misconceptions about nicotine, the realities of “big tobacco,” the future of nicotine replacement therapy, and his business journey building & marketing Lucy. Lucy was founded to help adult tobacco users who are looking to try high-quality alternatives to cigarettes and traditional tobacco products, without the carcinogens.

Nicotine is an addictive chemical, use responsibly.

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Check out:
John Coogan: [ Ссылка ]
Founders Fund: [ Ссылка ]
Lucy: [ Ссылка ]
Soylent: [ Ссылка ]


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Sponsor: Archer
Archer's Midnight is a piloted four-passenger aircraft designed to perform rapid back-to-back flights with minimal charge time between flights. Learn more about how Archer is set to open up a new world of opportunity for passengers by providing safe and efficient access to people, places, and events across the communities they live, visit [ Ссылка ]

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Companies mentioned:
Helium: [ Ссылка ]
Coinbase: [ Ссылка ]
Flexport: [ Ссылка ]
Varda: [ Ссылка ]
SpaceX: [ Ссылка ]
Palantir: [ Ссылка ]
Zyn: [ Ссылка ]
Juul: [ Ссылка ]
Altria: [ Ссылка ]
Nicorette: [ Ссылка ]
Dollar Shave Club: [ Ссылка ]
Warby Parker: [ Ссылка ]
Red Antler: [ Ссылка ]
Swedish Match: [ Ссылка ]
General Snus: [ Ссылка ]
Newport: [ Ссылка ]
TiVo: [ Ссылка ]
Vita Coco: [ Ссылка ]
Pepsi: [ Ссылка ]
Casamigos: [ Ссылка ]
Teramana: [ Ссылка ]
Rabbit R1: [ Ссылка ]
Rizz: [ Ссылка ]
Tinder: [ Ссылка ]

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TIMESTAMPS:
(00:00) The Origin Story of Lucy
(00:41) Introducing John Coogan
(01:20) What does an EIR at Founders Fund do?
(04:22) The Birth of Soylent
(08:31) The Viral Success of Soylent
(10:50) Challenges in the Nutritional Supplement Space
(12:40) The Regulatory Landscape of Nicotine Products
(14:46) Sponsor: Archer
(16:42) The Juul Phenomenon
(22:59) The Complexities of Tobacco Regulation
(36:25) Debunking Nicotine Myths
(37:38) Nicotine as a Stimulant
(39:33) The Smoking Epidemic
(40:31) Regulatory Challenges and Big Tobacco
(42:48) Building a CPG Company
(47:30) Marketing and Storytelling
(55:46) Tech Hot Takes and AI Gadgets
(59:38) The Future of AI in Consumer Products
(1:07:23) Closing Thoughts and Reflections

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Recommended Podcast: @TurpentineVC
What separates the most enduring and generation-defining venture firms? Turpentine VC talks to Ben Horowitz, Vinod Khosla, Alfred Lin, Mike Maples, Roger Ehrenberg, and more to find out.
Subscribe to the audio podcast here: [ Ссылка ]

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